Industry valuation
How Much Is A restaurant Worth?
Restaurants change hands more often than almost any other Main Street business — and they sell for less per dollar of earnings than most.
Averages across real reported sales of restaurant businesses, businesses sold Q3 2021 – Q2 2026. Multiples are averages; sale price is the median.
A worked example
A business is worth its earnings times a multiple. Take a restaurant with $100,000 of SDE and apply the average 2.18×:
That’s a midpoint, not a quote — an individual business sells above or below its industry average for the reasons below. Use your own SDE and see the full range in the valuation calculator.
Run your restaurant’s numbers →Why restaurant businesses sell for what they do
A restaurant's earnings lean heavily on the owner's daily presence, a specific location's lease, and thin margins a new operator can easily erode. Buyers discount for that fragility, which is why restaurants price near the bottom of the food-and-drink range. A full-service concept with a transferable kitchen team and a long lease sells for more than an owner-run spot.
What raises the multiple
- A long, assignable lease at below-market rent
- A kitchen and management team that stays after the sale
- Documented, growing sales — clean books, not cash-heavy ones
- A recognized brand or an established franchise
What lowers it
- A short or expiring lease
- An owner who is also the head chef or the sole draw
- Heavy reliance on third-party delivery apps
- Under-reported cash sales a buyer can't verify
Where these numbers come from
The multiples and median price above are transcribed from BizBuySell, Business Valuation Multiples by Industry, which aggregates real sold-business transactions (businesses sold Q3 2021 – Q2 2026). 80% of businesses in the source data set sold between $50,000 and $2,000,000 — the “main street” segment. SDE (Seller’s Discretionary Earnings) follows the IBBA standard: pre-tax profit plus one owner’s compensation and other add-backs.
Primary source: BizBuySell, Business Valuation Multiples by Industry. Last reviewed: July 2026.
Informational only — not a formal appraisal, a broker’s opinion of value, or professional advice. A published average is a starting point, not your business’s price.
Frequently asked questions
How much does a restaurant sell for on average?
Over the period businesses sold Q3 2021 – Q2 2026, restaurant businesses sold for a median price of $220,000 and an average of 2.18× SDE (Seller's Discretionary Earnings). Your own number depends on your earnings — for example, $100,000 of SDE at the average multiple works out to about $218,000.
Why do restaurant businesses sell for 2.18× SDE?
A restaurant's earnings lean heavily on the owner's daily presence, a specific location's lease, and thin margins a new operator can easily erode. Buyers discount for that fragility, which is why restaurants price near the bottom of the food-and-drink range. A full-service concept with a transferable kitchen team and a long lease sells for more than an owner-run spot.
How can I increase what my restaurant is worth?
The multiple rewards earnings a buyer believes will survive the ownership change. For restaurant businesses that means: a long, assignable lease at below-market rent; a kitchen and management team that stays after the sale; documented, growing sales — clean books, not cash-heavy ones. Each one makes the earnings look more durable to a buyer and nudges the multiple up.
Is this an official restaurant valuation?
No. This is an informational estimate built from published transaction averages, not a formal business appraisal or a broker's opinion of value. Treat it as a starting point to bring to a real conversation — run your own numbers in the calculator, then confirm with a qualified broker or appraiser.
Keep reading: What is my business actually worth? (and why every valuation disagrees)
Related tools
Estimate what your Main Street business would sell for: IBBA-method SDE from your own P&L, an industry multiple from published sold-business data, and every factor behind the number named and priced.
Open tool →Industry Multiple LookupLook up the published SDE and revenue multiples — and median sale prices — for dozens of Main Street industries, from real sold-business transaction data.
Open tool →SDE Calculator & Add-Back WorksheetWork out Seller's Discretionary Earnings line by line — owner compensation, financing and non-cash expenses, one-time items, and the normalization adjustments that cut both ways — per the IBBA's standard definition.
Open tool →